In a move that should surprise no one at this point, Donald Trump once again fired up Twitter.com to blindside our military with a tweet saying he will refuse to allow the renaming of any Army bases named after traitorous Confederate generals.
Confederate traitors killed over 360,000 Americans in the Civil War to defend slavery, yet Army bases across the US bear the names of traitors who led them. It’s shameful and beyond time for action to be taken to right these wrongs.
Here are the kinds of people Donald Trump is advocating for by insisting we uphold legacies of white supremacy and by keeping their names on our Army bases:
- Camp Beauregard is named after Confederate Gen. P.G.T Beauregard. Beauregard led Confederate troops in the First Battle of Bull Run, Battle of Shiloh, and the Second Battle of Petersburg, resulting in the deaths and casualties of over 50,000 troops.
- Fort Benning is named after Confederate Brig. Gen. Henry L. Benning. An advocate for secession after a failed run for Congress, he was appointed to the GA Supreme Court where he challenged state adherence to the Supreme Court rulings.
- Fort Bragg is named after Confederate Gen. Braxton Bragg. Bragg was a slave owner and is recognized as one of the WORST generals in the Civil War. His failure at the Battle of Chattanooga at the hands of Ulysses S. Grant ultimately helped hand victory to the North while sacrificing the lives of American soldiers.
- Fort Gordon is named after Conf. Maj. Gen. John Brown Gordon. Gordon was the slave owner of a 14-year-old girl. During his time in the Confederate Army, he was known as one of Robert E. Lee’s most trusted generals. Post-war, Gordon was an opponent to Reconstruction, advocated for use of violence to preserve white-dominated society, and is believed to have been the head of the KKK in Georgia.
- Fort A.P. Hill is named for Confederate Lieut. Gen. A. P. Hill. Hill often said he'd rather die than see the fall of the Confederacy, and, after leading his “Lightest Division,” he died in battle as an ineffective corp commander known for lacking judgment.
- Fort Hood is named after Confederate Gen. John Bell Hood. Hood commanded the Texas Brigade and was known for his recklessness. His career was marred by his failure to lead larger commands and his defeats in the Atlanta and the Franklin–Nashville Campaigns.
- Fort Lee is named for Confederate Gen. Robert E. Lee. Lee’s cruelty to slaves was infamous, imprisoning many for resistance and breaking up all but one family. Lee himself would often enforce whippings and punishment. Lee led the Confederate Army throughout the Civil War, losing to the North at the cost of over 620,000 soldiers.
- Fort Pickett is named for Confederate Gen. George Pickett. Pickett is known for Pickett's Charge, the Confederate offensive on the third day of the Battle of Gettysburg. Post-war he fled to Canada, fearing persecution for his execution of 22 Union troops.
- Fort Polk is named for Confederate Gen. Leonidas Polk. Polk was a Bishop and the largest slave owner in Maury County, TN, with nearly 400 slaves. He saw it as his duty as bishop to fight in the war and died in battle with the reputation of a failed commander.
- Fort Rucker is named for Confederate Gen. Edmund Rucker. Grandson of Gen. James Winchester, a veteran of the Revolutionary War, Rucker besmirched his grandfather’s sacrifices to build the nation by joining the Confederacy in tearing apart the country.
Maybe if Donald Trump didn’t have us blocked on Twitter, he would have learned something from this information we shared yesterday. But he doesn’t need us to know that the Confederacy fought a war against the United States to preserve slavery. He may not know the story behind each name, but he knows what they fought for. And he wants to honor it.
—VoteVets
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